A Change of Heart
by seasidehearts
Summary: Unsure of what 'love' is supposed to feel like, Kairi begins to date her best friend Riku despite her lingering doubts. When she meets a boy who makes her feel things she's never felt before, she's faced with a conflict; stay with Riku in a comfortable but otherwise dull relationship or try out something new and exciting with Sora. AU. Sokai. One-shot.


**Prompt by: Englishhedgehog13**

**This was originally a request for my collection of drabbles called "Sea & Sky" but I just really got into it and it turned into a full length one-shot. So thank you again for your prompt!**

oxo  
A Change of Heart  
oxo 

"I wish you could stay." Kairi pouted a bit, her hand lightly grasping Riku's.

"Me too. But I'll be back soon; my mom said she only needed my help for an hour or two." Riku replied, gently pulling away and moving towards the path back towards the houses.

Sitting down at the end of the dock and dangling her feet off the edge, Kairi suggested, "In that case, I'll just wait here."

Riku turned back, a concerned look on his face, "You sure?"

"Yeah, I'll just relax and get a tan. I have a book in my bag if I get bored or if I decide to go home I'll call you." She pulled the book out of her bag to show the top of it to Riku before letting it fall back in.

"Alright. I'll see you later, then." Riku smiled before turning around and heading off.

"Bye." Kairi called back before turning back towards the ocean water.

She and Riku had only been dating for a few days. He was her best friend and she liked him a lot but she wasn't quite sure if she liked him the way he wanted her too. He had tried so hard to flatter her and sweep her off her feet, it was pretty much impossible to say no even though she was still so unsure. '_What else could you want? He's attractive, thoughtful, sweet… There's no reason I shouldn't like him. Maybe I'm just over thinking it.'_ She sighed, raising her palm to her cheek in frustration. Trying to distract herself, she pulled her book out of her tote bag and started to read.

For a while she actually started to lose herself in the book. At least until she heard a loud splash from the water. Jumping in surprise, she put down her book and saw a boy with spiky brown hair emerge from the water with another splash.

Noticing she had put down her book, he smiled apologetically, "Sorry, did I distract you?"

She blinked, unsure of what to say, "It's okay. It's not like this is my private beach or anything, don't worry about me. I just can't believe I didn't hear you until you jumped into the water."

He laid back, letting himself float, "You were really into that book. But I was purposely trying to be quiet too."

She smiled, "Thanks. By the way, what's your name? I think I've seen you around school before but I've never really caught it."

"It's Sora. And you're Kairi, right?" He continued to float, his eyes closed.

"Right." She nodded, interested, "How'd you know?"

She watched his lips curl into a smirk as he replied, "Guess I'm just more observant than you."

Kairi rolled her eyes but still smiled, "I guess so."

"So why aren't you in the water anyway? Who comes to the beach and doesn't get in the water?" Sora teased her more, this time peaking an eye open for her reaction.

"I was getting around to it… The water was just too cold earlier." She stuffed her book bag into her tote bag, knowing she probably wouldn't be getting back to it for a while.

"Well it's perfect now."

Kairi shook her head, "Alright, alright. For not wanting to distract me, you sure are demanding."

Sora felt his face grow warm, "Sorry."

She shrugged before starting to take off her white coverup dress, revealing a lavender bikini, "No, no. No need to apologize." Draping her towel over the edge of the dock so she could easily grab it once she got out, she made her way down the stairs and towards the water. She was glad that his focus was on the sky as she was suddenly starting to feel shy about her bathing suit. Trying to shake it off, she got into the water as quickly as possible and immediately let out a small shriek, "You liar, it is definitely still cold." Kairi wrapped her arms around herself, the water a little bit above her elbows.

Sora let his feet fall back to the ocean floor, standing up again and shrugging, "Feels good to me."

"Maybe you're just some sort of freak of nature." She said through shivers, "I think I'm going to go sit back on the dock."

She turned to get out of the water but Sora reached out and gently grabbed her wrist, "Wait." When she turned around and gave him a questioning look, he quickly retreated his hand and felt his face growing warm again, "Just give it a couple of minutes, you'll get used to it."

Kairi wasn't exactly sure why she was so ready to accept a practical stranger's request, but she stayed, "Fine. But if I'm still freezing to death in a few minutes then I'm going to go back."

"Okay." He smiled, "Aside from the fact I never saw you around as a kid, the fact you can't tolerate the water being a little cold is a dead giveaway you're not from the islands. So where're you from?"

She sighed, "Yeah, that wouldn't be the first time I heard that. I'm from a place called Radiant Garden."

"What's it like there?" Sora asked with a tilt of his head.

Kairi couldn't help but laugh, "Well, the name's Radiant Garden. What do you think? It was covered in tons of beautiful plants. I used to go pick flowers all the time for my grandmother. But a few years ago Radiant Garden just really started going downhill. Bad people came into power and not long after that I lost my grandmother so I wound up here. I guess my parents were originally from here but I don't really know much about them. I was really young when I lost them."

"Wow, I'm sorry. " Sora looked down, unsure of what to say, "I know it may not be home to you but I hope you like it here."

"Actually, I think I do consider this more of my home than Radiant Garden now. It's so small and cozy and I've made a lot of friends here. I miss Radiant Garden sometimes but overall I'm really happy here. Despite the fact there are some things about me that make me stick out a little bit from everyone else." She stuck her tongue out.

He laughed, "It's not a bad thing. If anything, I think it makes you more interesting than everybody else."

"Really?" She raised her eyebrows in interest.

"Yeah. I mean like I said before, when you grow up on this island you know everyone and practically everything about them. But you're a complete mystery." His eyes washed over her and she felt her face grow warm.

Kairi looked down, smiling, "Heh. Thanks."

"You're welcome." He smiled back.

Letting a small silence pass over them, Kairi turned back towards the shore, "I-I think I should get going."

"Is the water still too cold?" Sora asked in a concerned voice.

"No, it's not that. Actually, it was starting to feel pretty nice." Kairi answered honestly as she grabbed her towel and wrapped it tightly around herself, "I just think I should go home. I've been here for a while now."

Sora started walking towards her, "Are you sure you can't stay for a little bit longer?"

Drying herself and slipping her coverup back on, she replied, "No, I've really got to go." Grabbing her tote bag and draping it over her shoulder, she stopped in front of him; ready to say goodbye.

"Can I walk you home, then?" Sora asked softly, "I wanna spend a little more time with you, if that's okay."

Kairi knew in her head that she should say no, but her chest was filled with butterflies, "S-sure."

He grinned, "Great." She started walking forward and he followed quietly for a minute or so before pointing out, "That's my house over there."

"Wow, you live so close to the water. I'm jealous." She commented as she looked over to his house. It was a very modest one story home painted a light blue; much smaller than her and Riku's houses. But to be honest, she preferred that. Her house was almost overwhelming at times and Riku's was even worse; if you wanted someone, you had to wander around the house until you found them since it was very unlikely they would hear you.

"Yeah, I love it most of the time. It sucks whenever we have a big storm, though. We haven't had a flood yet but my mom's always scared it's going to happen." He explained, a frown appearing on his face momentarily before turning back into a smile.

Kairi nodded understandingly, "I'm sure that can be scary. If you ever need to, the mayor's house is open. We have more than enough room."

"Thanks. I know my mom would definitely appreciate it." He gave a grateful smile, "What is it like anyway, living at the mayor's house?"

"The mayor and his wife are really nice, I'm glad that they let me stay with them. They are really busy though and it's a big house so it can get kind of lonely. To be honest, I tend to try and avoid going home until right before it's time for dinner. Even then it's not always a guarantee that they'll be there." She looked down, surprised at herself for letting him know something she hadn't really told anyone. _'What am I doing?'_ She questioned herself.

He frowned, "I'm sorry. Well, if you ever need someone to hang out with, you know where to find me now. Either at my house or down by the beach where we met."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." She smiled, but was thinking, '_I can't_.' The longer she was with him, the more she was beginning to like him. And the longer she was with him, the more she knew she had to call things off with Riku as soon as possible. She had only known Sora for a little over an hour and already her feelings for him were so much different than anything she had ever felt towards Riku.

Sora's voice pulled her out of her thoughts, "This is your house, right?"

She snapped out of it and looked around, answering sheepishly, "Oh, yeah. It is." She turned towards the house, "I guess I'll see you around, then."

"Yeah, same to you." Kairi heard him reply and she began to walk forward until she felt his hand catch her wrist again, "Wait."

"What is it this time?" She teased, turning around with a wide smile. Sora didn't answer but a nervous smile was on his face. Kairi watched nervously as his eyelids closed and he began to lean towards her before calling out, "Stop."

Sora looked mortified "I'm sorry, I thought—I'm sorry."

"No, you're right. I want to, but I can't." Kairi let out a sigh, "_I'm_ sorry."

He blinked at her in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"I'm dating Riku." She replied quietly.

"Oh." She saw the disappointment watch over his face before he turned to leave, "I understand."

"No, wait!" It was Kairi this time who grabbed his wrist, "Look. Riku is my best friend and I do care about him. But he's always liked me in a way that I didn't return. After he made advances for a while, I just started wondering if maybe I was making excuses. Or maybe liking someone romantically wasn't all that different than liking them as a friend and I was just expecting too much. But now I know that's not true. I really like you, Sora. But I have to work things out with Riku first and it's okay if you don't want to wait around for me to fix things. But at least now I know that what I'm doing to Riku isn't fair."

Sora looked surprised at first as he was letting it all sink in, but eventually he gave a small smile, "Take all the time you need. I'll wait."

She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly, "Thank you."

oxo

It had been two weeks since Kairi had broke the news to Riku. He was hurt, of course, but appreciated that Kairi was honest with him. She and Sora had been hanging out almost every day, but explicitly as friends since Kairi didn't want to upset Riku more than she already had. Eventually Riku pulled her aside and told her not to worry about him and to let herself be happy, adding that he thought Sora was a great guy and he would be happy for them.

Once Kairi let Sora know, his face lit up instantly, "Can I kiss you now?"

She laughed, "I guess so."

Her heart rate practically doubled as Sora took both sides of her head into his hands and leaned in towards her. Smiling nervously, she closed her eyes as his lip eagerly met hers. Any awkwardness she had felt melted away as he kissed her, one of his hands eventually drifting to her waist and pulling her closer.

When they broke away from each other, Sora commented softly, "It was definitely worth the wait." Kairi smiled, kissing him again.


End file.
